One Step Behind
by SlvrSoleAlchmst1
Summary: Roy is called to help capture Scar, and it's a dangerous mission. In an attempt to protect Hawkeye, he tries to dissuade her from going along. But Riza wouldn't dream of leaving his side. She'll stay a step behind the man she trusts and watch his back.


_A/N: I decided that I don't write enough het pairings. (While an experiment sets me back yet _again_, I'd say it's worth it.) Try this on for size and tell me if it's any good, hmm? I've always loved Roy and Riza, so hopefully I can do them justice even in this brief piece…_

Riza kept her back turned as Roy Mustang slammed the telephone onto the receiver. She shuffled papers to one side, careful to keep quiet as the Flame Alchemist muttered obscenities under his breath. She knew his eyebrow was ticking – the right one, it always did – and she didn't need to witness the scowl on his face to be sure.

Roy moved to pace beside his desk, muting his grumbling somewhat but walking with a stiffness that suggested he'd gotten bad news. Riza pivoted and placed the stack of papers down, arranging her features to wipe away prior hints of amusement.

"Here are the reports you asked for, Colonel."

"Thank you, Hawkeye. That'll be all for now."

Riza didn't move, but stood respectfully on the carpet and watched as Roy snapped his fingers. A spark alighted in his palm, and he tossed the ball of fire up and down absently. He strode around the office while he mused. With barely a glance at Riza, he slipped behind her and continued pacing.

There was another snap. A whoosh. A muttered curse and the sound of flames being patted frantically.

"Easy on the furniture, sir. It's only made of wood."

"I thought I dismissed you, Hawkeye."

"You did, sir, but I decided you might need me here to extinguish your temper."

Roy growled something unintelligible before he responded. "That was out of line, Lieutenant."

"Yes Colonel. Forgive me." But there was a hint of humor in her hazel eyes.

The Flame Alchemist eyed the scorch mark on the tabletop, and a deep consideration clouded his face. It was some time before he moved, but Riza waited patiently.

"Pack your things, Lieutenant. We're going to Central."

Riza's eyes widened, but she wisely sealed her lips and gave a quick nod. Roy Mustang would explain things when he was ready. He always did. For now, she followed him into the hallway and down the corridor. She marched one step behind him, where she could see both her commander and all of their surroundings clearly. Roy Mustang's profile was usually soft and unguarded, but now it was hard with a severity that she didn't know the cause of.

"Sir," she began before she could stop herself.

"Not yet, Hawkeye."

And that was that.

They strode past the soldier's quarters, pausing only to allow Roy to torch Havoc while the blonde man fought to get a dinner date from a female officer. It wasn't until they had turned two more corners and entered a plain door at the end of a quiet hallway that Roy ventured to speak again.

"Quickly, Lieutenant." He gripped the handle and beckoned her inside.

Riza blinked at the darkness of the room. Her eyes were already bleary from staring loyally at the back of Roy's head.

As if reading her thoughts, Roy flicked on a table lamp. "Do you know why I brought you here before allowing you to collect your belongings?" he asked her.

"Because you wanted to escape Havoc after you ruined his chances with another girl, sir."

Mustang's smile was a wry one. "A good guess, Hawkeye, but I'm afraid you're mistaken." He squinted through the crack in the window drapes before pulling them more tightly closed. "No. You're here because I have a question to ask you that I can't allow the others to know about."

Riza tried to keep the surprise out of her voice. "And what's that, Colonel sir?"

Now Roy was smiling with genuine amusement. Riza Hawkeye wondered whether she should panic.

"Have you got yourself any kind of boyfriend, Lieutenant?"

An immediate flush of tomato red set Riza's face awash with embarrassment. "S-sir, I fail to see why you're asking me about my personal life. What is the relevance—"

"Don't be impertinent, Hawkeye. Answer the question." He wasn't upset. In fact, his face was serene with patience as he waited for her to compose herself.

"I have no significant other to speak of, Colonel Mustang sir," she fired off with perfect ease. "Please excuse my outburst."

Roy chuckled softly and moved to the opposite side of the room to secure another window's drapery. "I hope you didn't take offense, Hawkeye. If you think I've been taking lessons in How To Woo Women from Havoc, then you're sorely mistaken."

Riza's shoulders relaxed, and she let out a sigh of relief. "Havoc takes _his_ lessons from _you_, sir. And of course I'm not offended."

She remained at attention as the Flame Alchemist settled himself behind the vacant, dusty desk and steepled his fingers. His hands looked elegant beneath the white gloves, his face shadowy and handsome under the dim lamplight.

"Good. Because I didn't take you here to ask you to dinner, Lieutenant," he said. "I only wanted to know if there's anyone I should be alerting about your absence before your trip with me to Central." A strand of dark hair fell into his eyes and he tossed it back, searching her for a response.

"Alerting them, Colonel?"

Roy's brow knotted. "This is a dangerous mission, Hawkeye. If you think I'd cart you off at my side without checking with your friends and family first, then what kind of man would I be? I want to know if those close to you are all right with you leaving."

Riza's brow knotted to augment her confusion. "But this is the military, sir," she said, as if the words spoke volumes.

Mustang let out a laugh that carried no humor, only irony. "That may be so, but there's no way I'd put you in danger knowing that the people who love you would hunt me down should you be killed in action." Riza couldn't tell how serious he was, but his words melted into her. "You're one hundred percent capable, Hawkeye, but this is war and people die." He frowned suddenly. "I'm sure I'm already on Ed's hit list. I don't need more pipsqueaks chasing after me for revenge."

"There aren't any pipsqueaks in my family, sir," Riza replied, wondering what the Fullmetal would do if he'd been present at that moment. "I appreciate your concern, but there's no need to worry. I haven't got anyone to alert about my trip to Central HQ."

Roy raised a disbelieving eyebrow in her direction.

"Now that's a shame," he said coyly. Riza didn't move a muscle. "In any case, Lieutenant, this mission is to be only for the best. That was Hughes on the phone back there – he's told me that he's recently seen Scar in Central."

"The Ishbalan that's been exploding our State Alchemists?"

"You might try a little prudence the next time you say it like that, Hawkeye."

"I apologize."

Roy moved on without a hitch. "Yes, that's our man. Hughes has already got Major Armstrong on the team, and rumor has it Brigadier General Gran is getting so fed up he's threatened to take control of all maneuvers himself."

"The Brigadier General?" Riza's eyebrows shot upward. This was an important mission indeed.

"Yes. Scar is quick and deadly," his words were slow to stress the gravity of the situation. "He blows apart their brains from the inside, Lieutenant Hawkeye. He robs soldiers of their lives before they have a chance to realize what's happening to them. He's highly dangerous, and it's up to us to catch him. That's why we need the best. That's why I'm asking you to come with me."

Riza straightened her back and threw her commanding officer a salute. "It would be my honor to accompany you to Central to take Scar down, sir."

"You haven't listened to me, Hawkeye." Roy's voice had gone low and tense, a sound almost as unfamiliar to Riza as children's laughter or recreational music – sounds that were foreign to _any_ soldier.

"Scar targets the State Alchemists," Roy went on, "But he doesn't care who else gets in his way. If he comes after me, he'll take you down too if you get too close, and then you won't be coming home."

Riza relaxed her stance and met his glittering black eyes without fear.

"It wouldn't be worth making it home without you sir, so it's a risk I'll gladly take." Roy Mustang looked stunned for a flicker of an instant, and then he sat back in his chair.

"You never cease to surprise me, Hawkeye."

"I'm full of surprises if you pay attention, Colonel." At once she blushed. She hadn't meant her words the way they'd sounded. But all Roy did was rise slowly to his feet and meet her hazel gaze.

"You really will follow me no matter where I go, won't you?"

She didn't hesitate. "Yes sir. No matter how high you climb, I'll be ready for your orders."

"Careful, Lieutenant," he warned, "If you stick around until I'm Fuhrer, you'll be in a mini-skirt."

"Save the mini-skirt speeches for the other soldiers, sir."

"That's no way to speak to your superior." A smile.

Roy turned out the lamps and they crept back into the hallway. Riza set off for the barracks where she kept her belongings. The Flame Alchemist disappeared in the other direction, striding with all the confidence he was known for.

Riza turned around and followed him, deciding to take the longer route to her quarters. Mustang glanced over his shoulder upon her approach and grinned just slightly.

"Sudden change of heart, Hawkeye, or are you tailing me on someone's command?"

This time, she could not hide her own grin as she responded. "Just keeping my eye on you from back here, sir."

"One step behind to guard my back. Like always, isn't it Lieutenant?"

"Yes sir. Like always."


End file.
